The adoption of International Accounting Standards in the European Union

Abstract

This paper discusses the IASB's process of developing accounting standards for adoption by listed companies within the European Union. Issues addressed include the structure of the IASB, its role as a global standard setter and its programme. Particular attention is given to two topics that are both controversial and important, accounting for financial instruments and reporting financial performance.     

The determinants of austerity in the European Union 2010–16

This paper aims at decteting what drove the adoption of austerity policies over the period 2010–16 in a panel of 28 European countries. Austerity is identified by year increases in the ratio between the structural primary balance and potential GDP. By means of principal component factor analysis we select the aggregate factors that might affect austerity, namely (i) fiscal consolidation (correction of high deficits and debts), (ii) market discipline (high sovereign spreads, low ratings), (iii) rule-based fiscal discipline (compliance with the Eurozone rules), and macroeconomic stabilisation (consideration for the cyclical position of the economy). Then we estimate a dynamic panel model with the system-GMM method. Results show that the most important contributions to austerity are provided by the market discipline and fiscal consolidation factors together with Excessive Deficit Procedures, with no significant role played by concomitant macroeconomic conditions. Overall, governments complied with orthodox fiscal principles and rules.     

Voluntary US GAAP Disclosure in India: The Case of Infosys Technologies Limited

This paper describes the impact of economic liberalisation in India on financial reporting. It explains the role of internationalisation of business on financial reporting by firms. Infosys Technologies Limited, a leading Indian software company with extensive international operations, has recently provided supplementary unaudited US GAAP financial statements in addition to the financial statements required under Indian company law. The paper presents a case study of this company to illustrate the incentives for voluntary non-domestic GAAP financial statements in corporate reports.     

E-procurement adoption by European firms: A quantitative analysis

We explore country differences in adoption of electronic procurement. Data are used from the EU-initiated e-Business W@tch survey 2003. Analyses are conducted on 3475 organizations from seven different European countries that were stratified according to nine different sectors and three size categories. It appears that there indeed are country differences with respect to e-procurement adoption, and that firms from countries with a low uncertainty avoidance such as Germany and the UK are the early adopters of e-procurement, while countries that are less reluctant to change such as Spain and France have lower adoption rates.     

A firm-level analysis of determinants of ICT adoption in Spain

The purpose of this paper is to analyse the role played by five groups of factors in ICT adoption: environment, firm structural characteristics, human capital, competitive strategy, and internal organization. In order to achieve this goal, the data collected in a survey with a sample of 337 Spanish workplaces are used. The paper overcomes some of the limitations found in the empirical literature since it examines several ICT infrastructure and usage indicators at the same time, using a sample of workplaces of different sizes in all activity sectors in a context of a developed country with a low rate of ICT incidence. Results highlight the need to study the different ICT separately as well as the importance of establishment size, multinational ownership, and high-skilled workforce in ICT adoption. Quality control systems and team-based organization of work also play a relevant role in the diffusion of certain elements of ICT within firms. The need of reviewing the traditional public support for ICT implementation on small workplaces arises, together with the existence of complementarities with policies aimed to attract foreign investments and to increase the workforce education level as a way to spread ICT implementation. Results also show that managers need to align ICT adoption and the strategic focus of the firm more consistently.     

Voluntary adoption of ISO 14001 in Japan: mechanisms,stages and effects

This paper seeks to understand what factors contribute to voluntary adoption of the ISO 14001 environmental management system by private sector facilities in Japan. A model based on regulatory, competitiveness, social responsibility and organization theory is applied to 1999 survey data. Analysis shows systematically different factors to be important indicators of voluntarism in different industries and for facilities at different stages of certification. First adopters and second adopters appear to be fundamentally different types of organizations driven by different internal and external factors. Although results do not indicate a clear causal linkage between ISO adoption and greening activity, evidence shows that at least two different stages of adoption have taken place in Japan and that ISO adoption is associated with environmental action. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. and ERP Environment     

Secession in the European Union

This paper argues the case for the right of secession in Western democracies. I suggest that the winners gain more than the losers may lose. Indeed, the external effects of secession may well be positive. However, the political economy of secession is highly problematic. Ideally, the rules for secession should be set at the international level but international organisations have a vested interest in preventing secession. It is easier to establish the right of secession at the national level. The opinion of the European Union institutions that Catalonia and Scotland, after seceding, would have to reapply for EU membership has no basis in the European treaties. Nor has this question been settled in any UN agreement or Vienna Convention. There are merely practices, and they vary among international institutions. The paper concludes with suggestions on how secessions from EU member states and withdrawals of member states from the EU might be implemented.     

Determinants and Consequences of a Voluntary Turn Away from IFRS to Local GAAP: Evidence from Switzerland

Abstract

We examine determinants and consequences of a turn away from International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) to local generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), thereby exploiting a unique feature of the Swiss setting in which listed firms are allowed to switch from IFRS to Swiss GAAP, all else being equal. We posit that net benefits of IFRS are less for small firms with higher insider ownership. In addition, we predict that the net benefits of IFRS are not constant over time because of changes in IFRS and/or changes in firm-specific circumstances. To the extent that the switching firms’ costs of IFRS reporting outweigh its benefits, we do not predict adverse capital-market effects after a switch. Consistent with predictions, we find that (a) small firms with higher insider ownership and fewer foreign investor holdings are more likely to switch, (b) increasing reporting costs as well as changes in firm-specific circumstances affect switching propensity, (c) switching firms substantially reduce their disclosures after they switch, and (d) switching firms neither experience a decrease in liquidity nor negative announcement returns. Overall, our findings are important for standard setters and securities regulators in shaping (future) reporting requirements for listed firms.     

Increasing e-ordering adoption: A case study

e-ordering systems are currently widely adopted by organisations. Attractive business cases, however, tend to deteriorate when intra-organisational adoption lags behind as compliance of the intended individual behaviour is not achieved in a timely fashion. This paper shows the findings of an in-depth case study aimed at identifying the effectiveness of interventions in speeding up and/or raising compliance to the intended behaviour. In the case study, the effect of mandating system usage is shown to overcome the ‘benefit imbalance’ between individuals and organisational benefits. While enforcement resulted in an initial system usage, achieving intended behaviour required additional interventions. The paper closes with theoretical and practical implications.     

Unemployment shocks and material deprivation in the European Union: A synthetic control approach

This paper analyzes how material deprivation responds to drastic changes in unemployment levels. We explore unemployment shocks registered in some European Union countries during the so-called Great Recession. To do so, we apply the synthetic control methodology, which has been rarely used in the field of distributive analyses. We use this approach to identify the impact of unemployment shocks on material deprivation and conduct different sensitivity analyses to test the results. We find that contrary to the traditional assumption of the low sensitivity of material deprivation measures to changes in the economic cycle, unemployment shocks have a significant and rapid impact on material deprivation. This conclusion holds even when extending the period of analysis, changing the indicator of material deprivation, or modifying the definition of unemployment shock.     

Complementary pensions in the European Union

In some countries of the European Union (EU) complementary pension schemes represent a major part of pension provision, whereas in others they play a relatively marginal role. An important factor is whether the social security scheme provides earnings-related benefits and whether the ceiling on eligible earnings for social security purposes leaves room for there to be a demand for supplementary pensions arrangements, in particular for the higher paid. Pressures on the financing of social security, especially with the expected ageing of the population in the first 30 years of the next century, are encouraging many countries to develop complementary provision, and a number of new pension laws have been passed in recent years. However, important though the growth of complementary provision is, it should not be forgotten that investment markets are also likely to be affected by the ageing of the population. There are increasing pressures for greater investment freedom for complementary pension schemes, but little progress has been made by the EU in harmonisation of the regulatory regimes for complementary pensions. If mobility of labour between the countries of the EU is to become a reality, progress needs to be made soon on these pensions issues.     

From European Union to European Monetary Union: the new member states and accession countries of Central and Eastern Europe in 2004

The 10 new member states and candidate countries from Central and Eastern Europe have made the institutional reforms embodied in the acquis communautaire, including developing institutions of social dialogue which are supposed to ease the path to entry into the European Monetary Union (EMU). This review assesses the challenges facing the Central and Eastern European countries in achieving the targets set for EMU entry and questions whether the existing institutions of social dialogue will be able to bear the strain of achieving those targets.     

欧盟标准化政策与欧洲统一大市场（4）

6 市场监督是欧盟实施新方法指令的重要手段市场监督是各国政府都极为重视的一项活动,旨在利用法律保护消费者的利益。在欧盟,市场监督已成为法律框架中不可分割的一部分,它是欧盟实施新方法指令的重要手段,其目的就是保证投放市场的产品符合新方法指令的基本要求,保护最终用户（消费者）的健康和安全,保证商品在内部市场的自由流通并消灭不公平竞争。新方法指令为各国主管当局开展市场监督活动提供了法律依据以及诸如CE标志、EC合格声明等有效工具。6.1 市场监督所遵循的原则为保证市场监督的公正性,欧盟委员会要求市场监督工作必…     

欧盟标准化政策与欧洲统一大市场 (3)

5指定机构在欧盟合格评定中的作用 指定机构是由各成员国主管当局批准的、依据新方法指令中规定的合格评定程序开展审核工作的机构,它在欧盟的合格评定中起着举足轻重的作用。 5.1 指定机构的职责 指定机构的首要任务就是依据新方法指令中提出的要求,在指定的范围内向共同体内外的经济运作人提供合格评定服务,它们可以在本国、在其它成员国或第三国家的领土上开展合格评定活动。 如上所述,欧盟的合格评定程序被细分为 8种基本模式和 8种基本模式的补充模式。在这些模式中,需要指定机构参与的有 Aa、 B、 Cbis、 D、 E、 F、 G…     

欧盟标准化政策与欧洲统一大市场（1）

欧盟为了加快内部市场的统一,消除贸易技术壁垒,自 20世纪 80年代以来先后出台了许多新政策,其中影响较大的就是由欧盟理事会于 1985年 5月 7日批准的《技术协调与标准化新方法》（简称《新方法》决议）。决议提出了用欧洲标准支持共同体技术法规的思想,即共同体法律只规定产品投放市场所应达到的基本要求,而将制定达到这些基本要求的技术方案的任务交给欧洲标准化组织,明确界定了欧洲立法机构与欧洲标准化组织之间的关系,使欧洲标准成为支持法律、消除贸易技术壁垒的重要工具。 1989年 12月 21日欧盟理事会又通过了《认证和测试全…     

欧盟标准化政策与欧洲统一大市场（2）

2欧盟新方法指令与欧洲标准化的关系 2． 3协调标准　　根据《新方法》决议,由欧洲标准化组织 (欧洲标准化委员会 CEN、欧洲电工标准化委员会 CENELEC及欧洲电信标准学会 ETSI)依据欧盟委员会下达的标准化委托书制订的标准是协调标准;其制订工作必须是在所有利益相关方协商一致的基础上完成。协调标准制订程序如图 1所示。 　　欧洲的协调标准与欧洲其他标准的相同之处是,它们都是自愿性标准。不同之处在于,协调标准是按照指令的要求及规定的程序制订的,凡是符合协调标准的产品均可被视为符合新方法指令的基本要求,从而可在共同…     

Regional Bipolarization: The Case of the European Union

This study examines the degree of bipolarization of regional per capita income distribution in the European Union between 1977 and 1999. The results obtained reveal a decrease in regional bipolarization in the European context over the study period as a consequence of various factors working in opposite directions. Likewise, the analysis carried out shows that the national component is the main factor explaining regional bipolarization in the European Union, while the geographical location and the productive structure in 1977 seems to have less relevance. Cette étude s’intéresse au degré de bipolarisation de la répartition régionale des revenus par tête dans l’union européenne entre 1977 et 1999. Les résultats révèlent une réduction de la bipolarisation régionale dans le contexte européen pendant la période couverte, du fait de plusieurs facteurs opérant dans des directions opposées. De même, l’analyse effectuée montre que la composante nationale est le facteur principal d’explication d’une bipolarisation régionale dans l’union européenne, alors que le site géographique et la structure de production en 1977 ont, semble‐t‐il, peu d’importance.     

Fiscal competition and European Union: contrasting perspectives

This paper has two objectives. First, it provides an overview of the vast literature on fiscal competition. A major theme is that the desirability of such competition depends in important ways on one’s view of how the public sector works. This is a complex issue with some intriguing twists. Second, the paper explores the emerging structure of the public sector in the European Union in the presence of growing fiscal competition. From the perspective of traditional fiscal federalism, this structure may be ill-suited to performing two of the traditional tasks of public finance: support for the poor and macroeconomic stabilization.